Slice Of Life #244 - HOLIDAYS! - Tuesday, December 24th, 2019

    It's the holidays! Finally! I can stay at home and relax now! Currently, I am at home, drinking a pack of soya milk and a pack of double Belgian chocolate with pistachio milk because there has been no water supply to our area for 3 consecutive days. Because of that, no restaurants are open (well, some are, but I have feelings of doubt that the water they're using is clean water) because they don't have any water to use. Later, we're going to Subang Jaya, to the town next to us (about 30 mins from my house) to eat because they aren't affected and have a good water supply.
    Apparently, the river that we're taking our water from got contaminated because some people dumped oil into it (note to the person who dumped oil in it: seriously?), and now they have to clean the water (somehow) before they can send it to the water treatment plant.
    The river was fully cleaned yesterday, but we still have to wait for the water to come to us because the water needs to be processed and then sent to us. We're not only about an hour away from the treatment plant, but we also live on a hill, so I'm anticipating that the water's going to come to us sometime later today or tomorrow because it's going to take some time for the water to come to us.
    Now, I'm going to go set up my clarinet because I want to practice some songs and do something productive. Wait... For some reason, I can't put together my clarinet! I'm going to wait until my clarinet teacher comes later for my lessons.

An Hour Has Passed...

    According to my clarinet teacher, my upper joint has expanded because of the hot climate in Malaysia, and because of that, I can't assemble the instrument. Later today, I have to bring my clarinet to a shop so that they can fix it and do something about it (I don't know what they're going to do). My clarinet teacher is going to go home now because there's nothing much he can teach me without my clarinet. (I'm sorry!)
    I hope that we're going to get some more water supply later so that I don't have to keep going to other cities to eat. I'm going to end this post here because I don't have anything else to write about now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #243 - Currently... - Tuesday, 16/12/2019

• I am in the library at school (school is over).
• I am watching a very funny video.
• I am laughing like crazy.
• I'm going to do some math instead.
• I just remembered. Today's the last week of school before the winter break! All tests are over! Yes!
• It's the end of the unit, so we have to find unit rates or comparative rates on campus. We're doing some of this (homework) in math class because it's quite a long project. We need to make a video about the comparative rates.
• I'm going to go to the band room now to practice some piano because the library is about to close (it closes at 5:00pm).
• I have reached the band room. I'm going to not only be practicing all my exam pieces and scales that I need to know, but I also will practice a song called Allegretto Grazioso that I have just learned last week.
• One of my band teachers, Mr. Christensen, is playing amazing music on his trumpet right now!
• I've managed to play most of Allegretto Grazioso correctly, and it feels really satisfying!
• There is a guitar in the room and I am plucking some strings on it (I don't know how to play).
• I am experimenting with the guitar but am not breaking it.
• My music teacher just sang "Do You Want To Build A Snowman" when a student ran by (LOL!)
• I am checking my email.
• No new messages.
• I am going to leave the band room now to go downstairs to eat my dinner now.
• Bye!

Slice Of Life #242 - Life As It Is - Tuesday, December 10th, 2019

    Currently, I am eating my dinner as I am writing this post. I'm eating an early dinner because I have Boy Scouts later from 7:15 to 8:30pm, and I don't want to have to eat dinner after that. I've already finished my homework (HIP HIP HURRAY!), so I don't have to do anything after Boy Scouts. Unfortunately, I have math tomorrow, which means that I have math homework tomorrow (there is always math homework unless it's just before a long holiday - ie. 3 weeks).
    Today, I went for my 1st Peer Helper meeting (I got selected!) and got my green Peer Helper T-Shirt (which was S - small - size), but it was too big for me 😅.
    I don't really have anything to write about right now because nothing much happened in this past week. On Wednesday, we have our band concert (yes!) and I'm really excited for it because we sound amazing and I also want to hear the Grade 8 Senior band (who honestly are a lot more amazing than us).
    I'm going to watch YouTube now because I am bored and have nothing else to do. Bye!

Slice Of Life #241 - Tents in the Rain - Tuesday, December 3rd, 2019

    I opened my eyes and yawned. I stretched my arms wide and looked outside. I saw lots of tents already set up, with lots of kids running around, having lots of fun. Finally, I thought to myself. We're here!

    Along with the others, I got off the bus. 

    "Patrol leaders," Our scoutmaster, Scoutmaster Graham, said to us. "Please come with me."

    Because I was a patrol leader, I went with Scoutmaster Graham. It turned out that we needed to choose a camping spot for our patrol. We decided to camp in one big circle just for that sense of safety (I don't know about you, but I feel safer that way). Scoutmaster Graham then told us that it was now up to us patrol leaders to coordinate setting up the tents.

    "Guys, if you're in my patrol, please come with me!" I told my patrol. "We need to set up the tents."

    Everyone in my patrol followed. Suddenly, I heard a loud, rumbling sound. I looked up to where it had come from. I saw grey clouds overhead. They looked as if they were staring down at me like they were about to do something bad.

    And indeed, they did. There were only mere seconds before I felt the small drops of water plummet down to the ground. Before I felt the rain speaks to me in a language I couldn't understand. Before I felt like the rain was shouting at me and asking me to run away.

    And so, I did. I ran towards one of the cars to unload the tents. "Run, everyone!"

    I sprinted like my life depended on it. Now it had seemed like the sky had revealed it's sheer power, the rain really tormenting us now. It seemed like the rain had some communication to the ground too, with countless muddy puddles on the ground.

    I snatched a tent from the car, ran to the piece of flat ground that we were going to put it in, and ripped open the bag. My friend quickly pulled the tent out and quickly laid it on the ground.

    Great, I thought to myself. Now our tent is wet.

    I started to frantically connect the tent poles as fast as I could. After connecting them, I frantically put the poles into the flaps for them in the tent. I raised the tent and staked it to the ground. Fortunately, my friend helped put the rain fly on before even more water got into the tent.

   "Get in!" I shouted to my friend.

    I lied down inside the tent and wiped myself off with my towels. After that, I didn't do anything for a good 3 minutes, relaxing and enjoying the amazing sound of the rain trickling off my tent.

Slice Of Life #240 - Dale Carnegie - Tuesday, November 25th, 2019

    On Sunday, I went to attend the Dale Carnegie course. Apparently, this course is supposed to be a "motivational course", but it really stresses how to become the best you you can be. I had skipped at school trip to the MPO (Malaysian Philharmonic Orchestra) to go attend this course (which I was very sad about, but according to my friends it was a little boring - one of my friends who I will call T (he was in my class in 3rd grade) slept through the whole performance, according to him).
    I learned how to approach people and make friends with people. We learned about many things such as how to remember things better and how to be better prepared for an exam. We learned about some things that were essential to help bond friendships and to make people like you better as a friend and thought about who we wanted to apply those rules towards to get to know those people better.
    My parents were the ones who recommended me to go for this course. They had gone to this course in 2013, and they thought that it was really good and that it was going to be useful for me later on in my life, so they told me to go for the course. At first glance (so far, at least), I think that the course is pretty good and that the information that I learn will be useful for me later on in life. I'm actually attending the course for 13-17 year-olds, but my parents think that I'm mature enough for the course, so they let me attend the course. I was originally going to attend the English course, but the English course got canceled due to a lack of people, so I changed to the Chinese course. My goal is to win the Highest Achievement Award mainly because my dad earned it in his class, but also I want to grow as a learner in general anyways. If I don't earn the award, I won't be too sad (mainly because everyone in the class is at least 2 years older than me - I'm pretty sure 2 years older, but I'm the youngest in the class).
    I also got my own copy of the books How to Win Friends and Influence People and How to Stop Worrying and Start Living. Now, we have three copies of these books (because my parents also got them when they attended the course). My dad also has some books that cannot be bought in a normal bookstore because he earned those books by talking lots and giving good answers to questions in his class.
    Once I finish this course, every member of my family will have completed this course (because my mom and dad already attended this course before). I'm excited for next Sunday and what I'm going to learn in the course!

Slice Of Life #239 - High Achievers Award - Tuesday, November 19th, 2019

    "Chan Zhi Hong, High Achievers Award." The emcee said as I walked up the stage. I gave the woman a firm handshake.

    "Congratulations," She said to me as she handed me my certificate.

    "Thank you," I said, walking down the stage.

    I had been selected for the High Achievers Award for piano in my respective grade. I had successfully managed to secure 98% on my grade 1 piano practical exam. To get the High Achievers Award, you had to secure the 2nd highest score in your respective grade in your state (which means that someone got at least 99% on their exam - like, how?).

    I had managed to secure the 2nd highest score along with a few others in this section (3 others got the same grades as me), and therefore had earned the High Achievers Award, which was why I was at this auditorium with lots of other talented musicians to claim my award.

    I had woken up early that morning and ate a light breakfast (I didn't feel like having a heavy breakfast). My piano teacher had also come to watch me claim this award.

    There were many people performing at the event. The performers were all award winners, and honestly, they were all a lot better than me.

    There were also two people who managed to claim the exhibition award. They had managed to get the highest marks in the whole country to get this award. There was also one last award, but I forgot the name of the award. To get this, you had to get the most marks and best grade for your category.

    I was (and still am) very satisfied with the results that I've got in my exam. I'm going to keep working hard and I hope that I can earn this award next time.

Slice Of Life #238 - Love Beyond Boundaries - Wednesday, November 13th, 2019

    The moment I walked into that school and saw the snaking long line of people, I knew I wanted to help. I couldn't help but paint a smile on my face as multiple kids and adults thanked me for coming to help.
    Those kids, those adults, they were stateless people. Officially, they didn't have an identity, but unofficially, they were good, hardworking people that deserved to be recognized by the government. They had come here to seek a better life and make a living, but had come here illegally. They had stayed here for generations and generations, to the point where they didn't "belong" to any country anymore. They weren't recognized as a citizen of a country. 
    And me, I had come here to help them. I had come with my parents to help them and offer them help in any way possible, primarily when it came to healthcare. This was a yearly event, but as soon as my parents offered me this chance to go and help them and also take a glimpse at their lives, I knew I wanted to do so.
    They had no idea who I was, and I had no idea who they were, but at that point, it didn't matter. We didn't see differences, but instead saw similarities. I knew that we all were human beings, and that we were all  equally important. I was going to help, and I was going to help from the bottom of my heart.
    We had come with a non-profit organization called the Tzu Chi Foundation. Every year, an outreach like this would be organized by them. Volunteers from Tawau (where the outreach is being held) and Kuala Lumpur would come to help these stateless people live a better life.
    Lots of things were happening around the school. The dentists were carefully looking at everyone's teeth. The doctors were carefully inspecting the patients and making sure that they were in good condition and hopefully were thriving. The Chinese Traditional Medicine (TCM) doctors were performing acupuncture, focusing on every move they made. I watched lots of committed adults help wash kids' hair to make sure that their hair was free from lice.
    I noticed that lots of kids had lice, and I think that this is because of their unfortunate living conditions. They don't have access to clean water or shampoo to clean themselves. They also don't have the privilege of bathing everyday.
    When I realized this, I realized that we really are lucky. For most of us, having access to clean water or shampoo is not a privilege. Most of us have access to that and use it everyday. In fact, it's become a norm for us to take a bath with soap everyday. But these people, they don't have access to this thing that we use everyday.
    I was assigned to help out at the pharmacy department. At first, I was confused because of the variety of medicines that were on offer to the refugees. I watched as many hands frantically scribbled down letters and words, labeling each and every bottle of medicine.
    When reading the doctor's notes so that we would be able to see what we needed to dispense to the patients, I've noticed that lots of them suffer from illnesses such as diabetes and hypertension. Some of them needed lots of medicine - some of them took 8 tablets of a specific type of medicine everyday.
    Because of that, I've learned that we are lucky. We all have a nice and comfortable life. We all have access to basic needs such as healthcare. Because of that, we can get all our problems/illnesses solved before they get worse. But this isn't the case for not only these stateless people, but also lots more people around the world. We all take this for granted sometimes. Because while we all are lucky and fortunate enough to have access to healthcare, on the other side of the world, there are many people who don't.
    I also helped measure the kids' height and weight. I used that information to roughly calculate their BMI (their body fat). Some of them were really skinny and had a pretty low BMI. I think that this is because of how they were suffering from malnutrition.
    I also got to take a glimpse at their daily lives and their living conditions. At the same time, we conducted home-visits. If the people were too sick or couldn't come to us at the site to receive medical treatment, then we would go to them at their house to help them.
    I saw some people selling bags of what looked like ice cream or popsicles, but found out that inside those bags were oil, not ice cream. If they found a ringgit or two on the floor, they would be able to buy some oil for cooking purposes. I then realized why. Buying oil in large amounts would cost lots of money, and they couldn't afford all that. They didn't have as many rights as us, so they didn't receive as much salary as us.
   They also didn't have very good living conditions. We had to walk across unstable wooden bridges to get to their houses. I was really careful not to fall off them. They had branched out into the sea (close to the shore) for more land to build houses. Most families only stayed in a small part of a house because they shared the house with other families. Only fortunate families had a whole house to themselves. Some of their houses weren't very clean either. I thought of my family and our house. We were 3 people staying in a house a lot larger than theirs. I had a whole room to myself. But my room was the size of a family's house in the village. They slept in that tiny space. I couldn't imagine sleeping in such a small room with lots of people. It would be extremely crowded, I thought, bearing in mind that one family had about 4 kids on average. Some fortunate families had a whole house to themselves, but usually, that was only because they had an extremely large family. I remember meeting a mother who had just given birth to a baby, but her oldest child was about 20/30 years old (I forgot the age) because she gave birth to a baby almost every year.
    I also met another kid who suffered from what the doctors think is scabies. His hair was also white and looked like it had got infected or something (this is something different, not scabies). Some of his hair had also fallen off. I don't know why this happened to him, but I think (and the doctors also suspect) that it was because of the poor living conditions and the fact that he didn't get to take a bath very often. Even when he could take a bath, it was usually with dirty water, which could possibly explain why he had scabies.
    I've learned that we are lucky. We all have the basic needs that we need and all have rights in this world. But these people don't. They have escaped from their country, and have lived here for many generations, therefore becoming stateless. Their identity has been taken away from them. We are very lucky to be able to live such a nice and comfortable life, but on the other side of the world, we don't know much about the lives of people that are not as fortunate as us. While most of us are aware that there are lots of people who aren't as fortunate as us, but never go and take a glimpse at their lives to experience and see their real suffering and what they have all gone through.
    There is a closed door isolating this information from all of us. But if we take a step and open that closed door and step away from our nice and comfortable life, we will find that on the other side, there are lots of people who are not as fortunate as us, and live a life anything but comfortable. But if we do commit to help these people, I truly believe that the world will become a better place for all of us and future generations to come. And I think that this should be our main priority. To take care of not only ourselves and this place, but to also take care of others so that our world will advance and thrive, and the world will become a better place for all of us.

Slice Of Life #237 - At School - Tuesday, November 5th, 2019

    Currently, I'm at school. It's currently homeroom, and we're working on agency proposals, but I don't have one, so I'm working on writing this post. Agency is where they give us time at school to do something that we want to do or do something meaningful to learn something, etc. Everyone that has an idea for what to do during agency has to complete an agency proposal. Because I have nothing to do (I don't have an idea yet), I am writing this post - I'm bored.
    I'm going to do my homework later during lunch (if possible) because I don't want to do it at home. Now, homegroup is over, so I'll have to complete this post later.

-----

    I thought that I was going to write this post sometime at lunch or something, but I didn't. Now, it's almost 10pm (going to go to sleep soon) and I started this post at 8am. I've completed all of my homework except for my science homework (due on Thursday), but I'm going to be doing that tomorrow. I'm going to go see my orthodontist, Dr. Teh, tomorrow to discuss things about my retainer. We have noticed that the screws don't seem to be working properly.

    Today's post is going to be shorter than all the others because I want to go read and go to bed now. Bye! See you next week! 

Slice Of Life #236 - Wonderous Vietnam - Tuesday, October 29th, 2019

    The past 5 days have been amazing, and have also gone by in a flurry. Currently, I'm in the airport, waiting for my food to come (and it literally comes as I'm writing this sentence).

    Yesterday, I went to Halong Bay, a World Heritage site in Hanoi. At Halong Bay, I got to go climb a mountain on Titap Island and enjoy the amazing panoramic view of Halong Bay. I also got to go into Suprising Cave (yes, that's the name if the cave) and see the beautiful rock formations and countless stalagmites and stalagtites. This cave was first discovered by the French in 1901 when they were still controlling Vietnam.

    After going to the cave, I got to go kayaking along Halong Bay and see the wonders of the area. While going back, I saw some monkeys scaling multiple trees, staring down at us.

    The day before that, we went on a city tour in Hanoi. We went to the Ho Chi Minh Mausoleum. This mausoleum is the place where Ho Chi Minh's body currently rests. This is the most heavily guarded place in all of Hanoi, with the army and police guarding this mausoleum, with special forces all around this area, ready to assemble on short notice.
    We also went to the Museum of Etymology, where we got to take a glimpse at the lives of different people from different ethnic groups in Vietnam.
    Then, we went to the Temple of Literature, which was originally build during 1070 for the king's son (to go study at). Last time, tests used to be hosted there every 3 years to see who in the country was smart (not the right way to phrase it, I think). Now, it's just a tourist attraction for us to go see and learn about it's history.
    In Ho Chi Minh city, we went to see the Gu Chi Tunnels, a wide and vast channel of tunnels used by the communists during the Vietnam War. I learned about many things, such as how the airholes were structured. These airholes were essential and crucial for the communists, and they had to make sure that they weren't discovered by the Americans because the American would be able to put in gas and kill all of them. So, they had an amazing solution. They put old jackets to block the airholes so that air would still be able to go through the airholes, but the American's dogs wouldn't be able to sense these as grounds that belonged to the communists, as they would think that the airholes belonged to the Americans.
    Also, they would also wear slippers backward (not really, but I can't really describe it) so that when they retreated, their opposition would think that they had went the other way.
    They also had 'secret shootholes' (that's what I'm going to call them) to shoot at the Americans - they fought using Guerilla tactics. After shooting a shot, they would run to another shoot hole and shoot from there, and so on so that the Americans would think that they had lots of people fighting for them, and retreat. They also had traps (terrifying ones) to scare the Americans psychologically and make them retreat.
    I'm probably going to be making a video about what we did in Vietnam sometime soon, but don't think that I will post it on this blog.
    But there's one thing I do have to say - the experience was amazing. And I hope that we can have experiences like this more often - because they really are amazing.

Slice Of Life #235 - At School - Tuesday, October 22nd, 2019

9:50am
    Currently, I am at school. It is now our 10-minute transition time, but I have arrived at Spanish class early, so I am writing this post. Some of my friends are talking about Pokemon, while another one of my friends is just laying his head on the table, procrastinating (no, not really. He's just bored). Okay... The class is starting now! I'll be back at lunch!

11:00am
    Okay. It's lunchtime now. I'm going to go eat my lunch first before I continue writing this post. BTW: My friends are still talking about Pokemon.

11:35am
    Today, for lunch, I ate some cauliflower, chickpea, and dahl curry. Tomorrow, I'm going to have a shorter lunchtime because I have signed up for composting duty (standing by the compost bin and making sure that no one throws un-compostable stuff in it). The compost gets rolled to the elementary school every day because that's where the school's composter lives. Today in Spanish, we played a number game as our warm-up. Next, we worked on writing our essay about what we like to do. We are now producing a final draft. I'm almost done with my final draft but want to check with my Spanish teacher before I print. WIN (What I Need) time is starting pretty soon, so I'm going to get my supplies. Be right back.

11:45am - WIN TIME
    Okay. It's now WIN Time. I'm going to go ask my teacher if my science work is worthy of an extends and then make any changes that she suggests.
    My teacher says that what I have right now is pretty good, but she says that I can use more words in the vocabulary/concept list to make my work better and show deeper understanding. I will do that now. I'm talking about volcanoes and how hotspots form them now - because I didn't do that yet. Now, I'm going to talk about how convection currents move tectonic plates. FYI, the question is "Explain how hotspots provide evidence for plate movement" - just so you understand what I'm talking about more.
I've just realized that I've said nothing about Spirit Week. In middle school, we have a week called Spirit Week. Each day has a theme, and these themes are suggestions on what we are supposed to wear. For example, yesterday was sports day, and we were supposed to wear our favorite sports jersey (if we had one). Today is black and white day, and tomorrow is movie & book day. We're supposed to wear a shirt with our favorite character from a movie or book. Thursday is meme/vine day - what are we supposed to wear? I'm probably going to just wear normal clothes on Thursday. Friday is house t-shirt day (we just basically wear our house t-shirt) - but we get to miss some class to play on that day!

3:00pm
Okay, school is over. I'm currently going to my Chinese class. Now, I'm going to read some books. See you next week!

Slice Of Life #234 - Currently... - Tuesday, October 15th, 2019

Currently...

• I know it is late, but I am still writing this post because I forgot to write last week's post.
• I have finished all my homework (except for some humanities homework - preparation for an upcoming socrative seminar (basically a conversation about something), which I need to finish at school because we need to watch the movie Wonder and I don't have it at home). But other than that, I'm done with my homework, so hip hip hurray! Plus, this is due on Friday, so I have plenty of time - not that I'm gonna' postpone doing it (due dates are closer than they appear).
• The fan above me is going swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!
• I am opening up PowerSchool, the website/app to check my grades.
• I will not elaborate more, but I am pretty satisfied.
• Wait! I forgot to press the mark as done button on Google Classroom for science class! I'll do that now.
• Click! It's so satisfying to press that button.
• I have a summative assessment due tomorrow (a summative assessment is really important), so I am going to make a few minor edits to make sure there aren't any errors - or at least I can reduce the number of errors in it.
• The summative assessment is all about civic virtues and the importance of civic virtues. It also asks us to try and make a difference to the community. After carrying out our plan (what we wanted to do to make a difference), we needed to write a summary of what we did and what we learned from the project (this is what is due tomorrow - but I'm already done with it).
• I am done with my editing, so I am going to go to sleep now.

Slice Of Life #233 - I Forgot To Slice - Wednesday, October 9th, 2019

    Rain plummeted down from the sky. I watched as countless rain droplets hit my parents' car.
    Suddenly, I realized something. I had forgotten to slice. Yesterday, I was going to slice before I did my humanities homework, but instead forgot about slicing and did my humanities homework.
    Now, I am going to school for a music informance - where the parents take a glimpse at a normal band lesson.
    Tomorrow, I don't have school because there are parent-teacher conferences. But, I still have to go to school because students have to be there for their conference and my conference is tomorrow.
    I really don't have anything to write about right now, so I guess I'll just wrap this post up for now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #232 - Home, at Last - Tuesday, October 1st, 2019

    I held my book, water bottle, and soap tightly in my hands. I closed the door and locked it. I then walked to the table in the middle to drop my stuff.

    This is what happens almost every time I go home. I drop my books in the table in the living room, drop my other stuff on the dining table, and go wash my hands and legs.

    This is what happened today when I got home. Today, I got home at about 8:15pm because I had Chinese and Malay classes until 8:00pm. Fortunately, this only happens on Tuesday. Unfortunately, I get home at about 9:15pm on Thursday because I have Jazz Band as an after school activity and Chinese as an after after school activity. After that, I have to go to my Malay class for two hours. Tuesdays and Thursdays are the days I hope for no or less homework. 

    I don't mind having lots of homework on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays because I have enough time to complete them on time. I may not have a lot of time to complete my homework on Friday, but at least the homework given on Friday is almost always due Tuesday or later.

    Today was the type of day when the world did me a favor - giving me almost no homework. There was some math homework today, but I have already finished it during WIN (What I Need) time at school - thanks so much for WIN Time; it's so useful.

    Now, I don't have any homework that is due this week (so far, at least), so I'm going to start working on my band homework after this. I'm almost done with my humanities homework, where I have to finish Wonder and write 6 sentences to summarize the section (I'm reading Wonder for the 2nd time and the book just gets better). All my homework is due on Monday next week, so I have a lot of time to do it, but I won't postpone doing it (welcome to my world!). I am hoping to finish all my homework today.

    I am expecting some more homework tomorrow, but only from humanities class. I don't think there will be any homework for science. There may be some homework for Spanish class, but usually Spanish homework is pretty easy and doesn't take a lot of time, so it shouldn't be a problem. I am not expecting any homework from band because we already have some homework that is due on Monday.

    Now, my mom needs to use the computer (my school computer has been "locked" because the school set parental controls - which is so annoying!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! - and it "locks" everyday at 8:30pm (except for the weekends), so I have to go now!

Slice Of Life #231 - Stroke Support Group - Tuesday, September 24th, 2019 - Happened on Sunday, September 15th, 2019

    I helped a stroke patient hold their hand up behind their head. "Yup, you're doing just fine," I told her.

    I was at a stroke support group organized by an NGO called Tzu Chi (which I help out at pretty often because my dad is one of the coordinators for the medical division). We were helping stroke patients do some exercise.

    Some of my friends were also helping out too. Ishan and Leo, my friends, were also helping the stroke patients do some exercise. The exercise lasted about 30 minutes. After the exercise session was over, we played a game (which, honestly, I'm pretty confused regarding how it's supposed to be played). In the game, the patients had to pick a piece of paper, and I think they would have to switch pieces of paper or something like that. But basically, to sum it up, the point of the game was to get patients to interact with others and to move around and (I think) strengthen their muscles.

    After that, we watched a video with them. The video also had a short dance (or for them, a "hand dance", I guess). We helped the patients move their hands and perform the "hand dance". I knew the song that they were playing, and it was a really meaningful and nice song. I think that stroke patients also enjoyed moving their hands and singing along.

   Finally, lunch had come. There were two people (stroke patients) with their birthdays on that day. I brought out the cake and my friends, Leo and Ishan, gave the two patients each a present - a small little bear on a keychain.

    We also served the patients cake and some food for lunch. After lunch marked the end of the short event. Time had flown and passed quickly without me realizing. I felt good leaving that day, knowing that I had done a good deed to help others.

Slice Of Life #230 - Escape Room - Tuesday, September 17th, 2019

    I heard the woman lock the door. "Ok guys," I said to my friends. "What's the first thing we have to do?"
    "I don't know." There were numerous replies saying the same thing.
    "Wait, what's that supposed to mean?" Tiago said, pointing to an inscription on the wall.
    "Oh, yeah!" Leo said. "What does that mean?"
    "Wait," Adam pointed to the side of a large block. "There are signs and letters on the block!"
    "Wait! The signs are the same as the signs on the inscription!" Julian said.
    After a while of trying to decipher what the inscription meant, we realized that it was telling us to cover the eyes, which were on both sides of the door.
    We covered the eyes, but nothing happened. We called the lady with the phone she had gave us to ask her about why nothing was happening. She told us that because we didn't want to be separated, there was no effect. If we wanted to be separated (by the door), the door would open if the eyes were covered.
    We went back behind the door to try to decipher the code behind it. There were 2 different sets of codes. We found 4 pictures in sets of 2 each. Each set was locked with a combination lock. After a while of deciphering (again...), we managed to find the code for each of the locks.
    We put the pictures on the large blocks with the names of the Egyptian Gods. Each picture was a depiction of the Gods, so we put them according to their names on the stilts. But nothing happened.
    Then, we received a call telling us that we had to hang them up. And so, we did just that. As soon as we finished hanging the pictures up, a mechanical box opened. Inside it was a feather.
    "Wait!" Tiago exclaimed. There was a picture of the Egyptian God of the Dead, Anubis. There was also a weighing scale with blocks by the end of the ropes. "That goes on the weighing scale!"
    "Yeah!" I said, agreeing with him. "If a person's soul was heavier than a feather, then the person would go to hell. If a person's soul was lighter than a feather, then the person would ascend into heaven."
    "But why isn't the 2nd box opened?" Leo asked.
    "Maybe because you didn't put it in correctly?" He asked sarcastically.
    I went and repositioned the picture. Suddenly, the 2nd box started opening. Inside the box was a heart.
    "I told you!" Tiago said happily. We put the heart on another block. But nothing happened.
    Then, we received a call from the woman. "Change the sides of the feather and heart," She told us.
    After we changed the sides of the feather and heart, a cabinet started opening.
    "Hey!" I shouted. "These are the heads of the Egyptian Gods! I think that we're supposed to put their heads on the stilts!"
    We put the heads on the stilts, but nothing happened. Adam went to grab the broken picture and  "English Dictionary" (the dictionary was locked) to see if we could do anything with it.
    We received another call from the woman. "Try pushing something big." She told us.
    Julian pushed something that looked like a door disguised as a wall. It spun open.
    I looked inside. It was dark and (somewhat) creepy. I looked at one of my friends. He looked scared. "Look, I know the music never helps, but we're going to get out of here." Tiago assured him.
    We found a box inside the dark room, which unfortunately, was locked. We also found a key. The key looked like it could open the "English Dictionary". Inside the "English Dictionary", we found two magnets.
    "Maybe the locks for this box are magnetic!" Tiago said.
    We put the magnets on top of painted keyholes, and the box opened. We found the combination to a combination lock in the box. There was also a coffin in the shape of a pharaoh. There was another combination lock on it. We managed to open the lock, but couldn't open the coffin. We then recieved a call from the woman. She told us to "blow out the candles". We did just that and opened the door. There was a curtain. We shoved the curtain aside, and the coffin introduced us to the exit of the room.

Slice Of Life #229 - Nothing to Write About - Tuesday, September 10th, 2019

    Hi. My name is Zhi Hong and I have nothing to write about today. Last Sunday, I went on a refugee outreach to offer medical aid to refugees (who, unfortunately, don't have any rights in Malaysia). There, I helped out by washing dental equipment and acting as a GP assistant.
    I have almost no homework (other than band homework and humanities homework), which I think I should be able to complete today (even though the due date for band is on Friday and the due date for humanities is next Wednesday).
    Later, I have my Malay class at 6pm. Just after school today, I went to ask for my Malay results for my test at school (the test was actually extremely easy). I know this sounds a little unrealistic (and not to brag), but I got 40/40 marks for the test - I told you it was easy!
    Today, at school, we had our first StuCo (Student Council) meeting. We're currently preparing for the 1st MS party and splitting up into different committees. I've signed up for the promotion and marketing committee, but have yet to hear from the committee leaders.
    Now, I have nothing to write about, so I'm gonna' go now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #228 - My Life - Tuesday, September 3rd, 2019

    My life is going pretty good right now. Tomorrow, I will be going on a field trip to Ipoh with my class (even though I've just came back from Ipoh last Sunday - Ipoh is my dad's hometown.) In Ipoh, we will be learning about the Orang Asli - The indigenous people of Malaysia.
    Because of that, all my homework is due next week - if we didn't have the field trip, all my homework would be due on Wednesday.
    At school, we have a period everyday called WIN (What I Need) time, which I have to admit, is pretty useful. WIN time lasts 30 minutes, which means that if you really make use of that time, you spend 30 minutes less at home on homework. During WIN time, I managed to finish my science homework and part of my math homework. Now, I just need to complete my math homework (which should take me about only 10 minutes) and my humanities homework, in which I need to finish a few chapter of the book "Wonder" by R. J. Palacio (which, by the way, is really amazing - you should read it) and write a summary of it by next Tuesday.
    Unfortunately, I haven't packed my bags yet, which I have to do after I come back from my Malay class later. I don't really have anything else to write about, so I'm just going to wrap up this post right here. Bye!

Slice Of Life #227 - Paintball - Tuesday, August 27th, 2019

    "Chris, I'm gonna make a run for it. Lay some cover fire for me."
    "Got it," He replied. "In 3, 2, 1, GO!"
    I sprinted towards another cluster of barrels. "Thanks, Chris!" I shouted.
    I peeked around the side of the barrels. I saw someone's head pop up above the tables. A number of paintballs flew out of my gun, and he ducked down.
    "Front line, advance in 3, 2, 1!" My friend, Roan shouted. I knew that this meant for us to lay some cover fire for the front line. I fired a few paintballs out of my gun again. I looked at everyone in front of me. I decided to make a run for it. I fired a few paintballs out of my gun and started running.
    And the next thing I knew, a paintball pelted me in the head. "Ouch!" I shouted in shock. I hadn't expected the shot to hurt so much. But I knew what this meant. It meant I was out.
    I started walking towards the sides of the battlefield, but suddenly, my friend, James, fell down, clutching his head. "Aaah!" He shouted.
    I ran towards him. Are you okay? Then, a Marshall came running towards him. The Marshall helped him up. According to him, he had been shot in the back of the head by friendly fire. Together, we started walking out of the paintball field.
    In the 2nd game, we played in a different field. This field had a small house on stilts, so I got up on it and started sniping everyone. I managed to snipe a few people from the house. After a few minutes, the game started to get intense. My friend, Benny, walked down the house and became my undercover agent.
    "They're in the other house!" He shouted back to me.
    "Really?" I asked him again as I fired a few paintballs towards the other house. "Benny, there's someone a few barrels from you!"
    I started frantically pulling the trigger of the gun.  Not after long, I saw the person raise their hand, which meant that they were out. I started firing a few bullets towards the other house. After 1 more minute, I heard the Marshall shout: "Game over!"
    I slowly climbed down the tall house. The match was over.

P.S.: Do not do this at home - I doubt that you will, but still, do not do this at home.

Slice Of Life #226 - Middle School - Tuesday, August 8th, 2019

    I've just came back from middle school. Today is the second week of middle school, but we have already done our reading and math MAP (Measures of Academic Progress) test. Tomorrow, we don't have any tests (which is a great relief), but we have a test on language usage on Thursday.

    In middle school, everyone has a really heavy backpack (or most people do, at least) because of all the supplies we have to bring to school everyday. We need a bunch of A4 notebooks now (which are a lot heavier than you think it is) for school. According to our math teacher, we need the thickest notebook we can find for math because we are going to be using a lot of paper for math this year.

    For us, middle school is like university. We have a 10-minute break between classes, where we have to walk to other classes. The teachers don't come to us. Instead, we go to them.

    Other than that, I haven't met a lot of people (from grade 5) in middle school yet. I think this is because all of our classes are in different orders, and we all have different classes (some people may have drama, while I don't - for this trimester, at least).

    I have completed most of my homework at school already (YAY!), but still have some math homework to do. I also have to practice my clarinet, so I'm just going to wrap up this post right now because I don't really have anything else to write about. See you next week!

Slice Of Life #225 - The First Day Of School - Tuesday, August 8th, 2019

    I looked at a piece of paper to confirm my homeroom. My mom was chatting with her friend. "I'm gonna' go up first!" I said to my mom. "Bye!"
    My mom waved goodbye to me and continued talking. I walked up the stairs to my locker.  I opened it, put my bags inside, set the combination and locked it. I pushed open the glass doors to the common area.
    Inside, I saw some of my friends on the sofa, chatting. I went over to join them. After a while, my mom came up just to check on me and see where the grade 6 common area was. She looked into my locker to see how big it was and how much space was in there. After that, she left for home.
    At 7:55, I walked to my homegroup. Me and my friends walked into the room and started talking (because we had nothing else to do). At homegroup, we got some information about the whole day. At 8:10, we left homegroup for our first class. Because today was day 1, I would have periods 1, 3, 5, and 7. I would start my day with period 1, which was Spanish. I made my way up to the 4th floor, where all the language arts were.
    After Spanish, I had a 10-minute break, where I didn't really have time to do anything. I had to make my way down the 1st floor, which was where my lockers were. I put in anything that I didn't need and got everything that I needed (or thought I needed, at least).
    After period 2, we had a welcome back assembly. After the welcome back assembly, we had lunch.
Then, I had period 3 (and I did not know which class I had - math or science - because I did not check my schedule - but I knew that we weren't gonna' do anything in the 1st class - and math and science were in the same class. After period 3, I had period 4, which was humanities. Humanities class was slightly shorter this time because we had a Green Team (which was my house - Green Team's the best!) get together. At the end of the get-together, I got my ID card. After that, I went to the library to borrow a book - which I already finished - and went home.
    And that was how my first day of school unfolded.

Slice Of Life #224 - At The Clinic - Tuesday, August 6th, 2019

    Currently, I am at the clinic. I attempted to sign in to my private account to write this post, but Google kept asking me for the a verification code and stuff like that. Unfortunately, I couldn't do that because my mom wasn't around (and she had the phone). I called her but she said she didn't receive anything and we tried different ways but it didn't work.
    Because of that, I have to use my school account to write this post. I wanted to use my private account because I would be able to do some writing after I wrote this post. Unfortunately, now I can't do any writing because all my work and stories are in my private account.
    I am currently at my dad's clinic because my mom is doing some things outside. Okay... The AC just turned off for no reason. I'm gonna go and turn it back on.
    I'm back. Now, I don't know what to write about. I'm reading on my Kindle. Oh, wait... I said that I was gonna write about my trip to Taiwan last week.
    Last week, I came back from Taiwan, where I went to a summer camp. At the summer camp, I got to experience the outdoors. The summer camp was a "farming camp", and so on the first day we played a few games that were widely played in rural areas.
    On the 2nd day, we went to a pineapple farm and an organic farm. At the pineapple farm, we got to eat as many pineapples as we wanted. At the organic farm, we got a lot of free food (in exchange for the fact that we had to "work" for them). We also helped them harvest vegetables.
    On the 3rd day, we we went to a beach and also a place where they would grow trees and use them to make things. We had a lot of fun at the beach, but unfortunately I forgot to charge my watch, so it "died" at the beach. My watch is alive now because I charged it when I got back. We also went to a place where they would take naturally grown trees (I forgot the species) and would make them into clothes and things like that.
    On the 4th day, we went clam catching and fishing. We did fishing the way the indigenous people did it. They would build houses for the fish and the fish would live in it. Then, when they needed food, they would catch the fish and eat it.
    On the 5th and final day, we went to a rice farm, where we learned about how they packaged rice, how they harvested it and how they made it white rice (basically stuff like that). After that, we went home.
    And that's basically what happened. I'm gonna go now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #223 - Life As It Is - Tuesday, July 30th, 2019

    Throughout this week, life has been pretty good to me. On the day before yesterday, I came back from Taiwan. In Taiwan, I went to a summer camp where we got to experience and play with nature. But because my brain is currently really exhausted, I'll save that for next week.

    I've just finished all my piano homework - which was a lot of homework - and because of that, my brain is exhausted and I don't want to write a really long post. Today is our king's coronation, so today is a public holiday. Because of that, I went hiking with my parents friends this morning.

    We went hiking in the mountain next to our neighborhood (or really close to our neighborhood, at least). I last went hiking there ages ago, which is pretty weird if you consider the fact that I live almost right next to it.

    The mountain we went hiking at is really massive, and also really energy consuming to climb it. There is also a waterfall in the mountain, which we went to (but didn't go swimming in). Because my dad is taking a lifestyle medicine exam soon, he stayed at home to do some revision. Malaysia has lots of really beautiful mountains, and I've went hiking in lots of them before. Some parts of the mountain we went hiking at were closed by the government because there were really beautiful lakes in there one of the lakes were green - in color - or something like that...

    While I was in Taiwan, my dad ordered a kindle for me to read books on. The kindle came yesterday (delivery was surprisingly fast), and it is extremely useful. You have to buy most of the books, but you can get pretty much every classical book in the world for free. Just make sure you get the one that says Amazon Classics Edition. For me, that's really good - because I'm reading classical books (I'm reading Treasure Island) right now and need the dictionary (you can click on any word if you don't understand it and it's definition will appear). If you want to read books that cost money, they're a lot cheaper than the paper version.

    Well, that's pretty much my life as it is. I'm gonna wrap it up for now. Bye!

Slice Of Life #222 - A Piano Exam

    I took a deep breath as I walked into the examination room. "Good afternoon, Madam," I said to the examiner.
    Today was a big day. In the morning, I had my Moving on Ceremony, where I got my certificate for completing elementary school. Now, I was taking my grade 2 piano practical test.
    "Please take a seat right over there," The examiner told me.
    I walked towards the piano and put my music on the stand. I opened it up to my 1st piece.
    "Let's start with Balleto, your first piece. You may start whenever you're ready."
    I placed my hands on the keyboard and started playing my first piece. I finished playing my first piece with a few mistakes, but not very obvious mistakes. Next up was my 2nd piece, The Ballerina. Somehow, I messed up in the middle and couldn't keep playing on, so I had to restart, which was extremely disappointing because I played that piece the best. I played the 3rd piece almost perfectly, so I was happy about that.
    Next up were my exercises. I had selected an exercise to play (the easiest one), and managed to play it perfectly. My examiner had the privilege to select my 2nd exercise. Fortunately, she selected the 2nd easiest, and I also played that perfectly.
    Next, the examiner came and asked me for my favorite piece. I showed her my favorite piece. She asked me a few questions about the piece. I was able to answer them all correctly (for some reason, she asked me really easy questions).
    After that, I played my scales. Scales are a set of notes in different keys. You would play either one octave or two octaves (for me, I had to play all my scales for two octaves). Overall, I played my scales correctly. My index finger slipped while I was playing a scale, but I managed to recover.
    Last but not least, I had my aural. I actually did pretty well in my aural test, because I got all questions correct except for one.
    "Your test is over," My examiner said to me. "You may go home now."
    "Thanks," I told the examiner. "Have a great weekend!"
    "Indeed, I will."
    I clutched my book tight as I opened the door and walked towards the waiting room, where my mom was waiting for me. The test was finally over.

Slice Of Life #221 - I Almost Forgot... - Tuesday, July 7th, 2019

     Okay... I have almost forgot to write today's slice. And, I don't know what to write about. It is really late now in Malaysia, so this slice will be a quick one - I need my sleep.
    Tomorrow, I'm going to do some maintenance in my "Lego Paradise". I need to do some repairing to a few things I have made out of Lego a long time ago. I call this place a "Lego Paradise" simply because it has lots of things made out of Lego in it.
    I am now laughing because of something I have found on Google. This picture brings me good memories - I was doing some research and trying to find a picture about plastic pollution with my friends when I came across this picture (on the right) and me and my friends started laughing like crazy - even though now that I think about it it really isn't that funny...
    Okay, it's getting late! I'm gonna go to sleep now! Bye!

Slice Of Life #220 - Social Change Blackboards Share - Tuesday, June 18th, 2019

    I walked into my classroom and got my computer out of the computer cart. My teacher, Mr. Herbert walked into the room.
    "Okay, class," He said. "As you know, today, we're going to be sharing our social change blackboards, or SCBs, with the 4th graders, your friends, some teachers, and your parents. Please get your blackboards ready."
    I opened up my computer and opened up the online map that showed live statistics of the air quality all around us. I was going to show it to the people that came to my blackboard. After everyone had done what they needed to do, we all started chatting to each other - because we felt like it, at least.
    Mr. Herbert croaked the frog. When he croaked the frog, it meant that he was trying to tell us to stop talking. He told us to go find our blackboards (but you didn't need to if your blackboard was on your table).
    At last, people started coming. I started presenting about my blackboard. I talked to them about global warming (which was my blackboard topic) and greenhouse gases and asked them to "go home tonight and do something to help our Earth."
    I actually managed to convince a parent to go vegetarian 2 days a week (I don't know if she's actually going to do it or if she's just saying it, but DO IT!)
    On the other hand, some of the 4th graders just wanted to know stuff about the blackboard.
    When I got home, I stuck my blackboard to the wall with a "sticky sticker" I had. Then, I took a few steps back and adored my amazing masterpiece. I had spent a long time working for this, but it had all paid off.

Slice Of Life #219 - Greetings From Spain! - Tuesday, June 25th, 2019

    Okay. I'm currently in Barcelona, Spain, and I am on a train, waiting to go to Madrid.

    Back in Malaysia, I made an itinerary for what we were going to do in Barcelona. I've also made one for Madrid, and we're going to be following it while we're in Madrid. 

    The time zone here is 6 hours slower than Malaysia's time. We were like backpackers in Barcelona, as we were walking to pretty much anywhere we had to go to. Altogether, we took 7 train rides in 3 days (not including this one).

    My mom is currently looking at the itinerary I've made for our trip in Madrid. Tomorrow, we're going to go to Seville. On the day after tomorrow, we're going to be going to Toledo. 

    My dad's made the itinerary for our trip in Seville, and we're going to be taking a tour in Toledo.

    Now, the conductor is talking over the loudspeaker. I'm sorry, conductor, but I can't understand anything you're trying to say to us...

    The train's started moving! Madrid, here we come!

Slice Of Life #218 - Summer Holidays! - Tuesday, June 18th, 2019

    Today is the 2nd day of my summer holiday, so I don't have to go to school. My summer holiday's going to last 2 months. Because of that, I'm going to be going to Spain this Saturday. But for now, I'm bored.
    I've just came up from the living room, where I've been reading The BFG by Roald Dahl. I've finished the whole book except for about 50 pages, which I should be able to finish in the car while we're going to a shopping mall later today.
    I'm also looking at a few books that I may want to buy. I'm currently looking at Allies by Alan Gratz. It's going to come out in October later this year, and I've recently become obsessed with books by Alan Gratz, so I may want to pre-order it.
    Downstairs, I have a whole bookshelf almost full of books that I want to read over the summer. Surprisingly, I haven't read Harry Potter (I read the first 20 pages of the first book, but thought it was too boring), so I'm going to try to read - and persevere - through it this time, because everyone says it's amazing.

Now wait, I need to go to buy some groceries with my mom...

    Okay... I'm back.  We went out, ate some lunch, and then bought some groceries. Now I have to do my research.

    Because we are going to Spain, my dad asked me to search up a few places to go to. We have 2 days in Barcelona where we don't know what we're going to do, so my dad asked me to find a few places where I'm interested in going.

    I'm gonna' start searching, so I'm going to conclude this post here. Bye! 👋

Slice Of Life #217 - Tooth Extraction - Tuesday, June 11th, 2019

    I was really scared. Today, I was going to be extracting my baby tooth because a permanent tooth had already grew behind it.
    I heard the door creak as a nurse opened the door to the dentist's consultation room. "Zhi Hong," She said kindly.
    I took a deep breath and walked into the room. "Hi," I said to my dentist, Dr. Cheah, who I already knew because my parents were friends with her. "So, you're going to be extracting your tooth today, huh?"
    "Yeah," I replied. I was really nervous because I am really scared of pain.
    She took a look at my teeth. She used a metal object and pointed at a tooth. "It's this tooth you're going to be taking out, right?"
    "Yes." I replied.
    Dr. Chuah turned to my mom. "Did Dr. Teh give a letter saying which tooth to extract?"
    I had recently gotten a retainer, and Dr. Teh was my orthodontist (AKA the person who told me to extract this tooth. AKA the person who gave me the retainer.)
    "Yes, she did." My mom replied. "Let me call his father to see if he has the letter with him."
    I didn't really know what they were talking about. I remember the letter Dr. Teh gave my parents being on a piece of paper. Then I realized that my dad had probably took a photo of the letter. My mom showed Dr. Chuah the letter.
    Dr. Chuah started to put the numb cream on the tooth. She told me that she would count to five and then it would be over. But, it wasn't 5 seconds. It was more like 10 seconds. Those 10 seconds felt like an eternity. The first few seconds didn't hurt, but when we got to the final few seconds, it hurt a lot. My eyes started to tear up.
    Unfortunately, we had to do it twice, which wasn't very good news. Fortunately, the second time didn't hurt as much.
    After that, I gargled my mouth. Dr. Chuah picked up something and started pressing my tooth with it. It was to check if she had put on enough numb cream, which she did. Dr. Chuah then picked up a pair of pliers and told me that the pain was over.
    She used the pair of pliers and took my tooth out. I got to take my tooth home to keep it. I exhaled with relief. It was over.

P.S.: If you are reading this and are also scared of pain, I don't mean to scare you with this slice. On the other hand, it doesn't really hurt that much.

Slice Of Life #216 - Chinese Chess - Tuesday, June 4th, 2019

    Okay... My chess class is over. Today, I had my Chinese Chess class, and I have to say, I learned a lot. The person that teaches me chess is an "international grand master". He competes internationally and arises as the champion in almost all of the competitions he attends.
    Before class, I was working on my Free Choice Writing Project (FCWP) so that I could get it finished before the end of the school year. I would then be able to publish it and have it put in the "5DH Library".
    I had gone down about 15 minutes before 7:00 (the time my chess class was supposed to start) to get my chess set out and organize everything. After that, I sprinted back up the stairs, taking them 2 by 2, just to get up so I could work on my FCWP.
    I finished writing chapter 11 of my FCWP when I heard the sound of a doorbell. Again, I sprinted, but this time down the stairs (*Please do not sprint up or down the stairs at home. In fact, don't sprint up or down the stairs anywhere. You could get seriously injured and you may or may not end up with a broken body part.*). I watched as my teacher came into my house.
    We started to play some chess. I improved every time I played it. I moved my horse. "Thank you!" My teacher said as he ate my horse with an elephant (I'm playing Chinese Chess, and Chinese Chess is different from normal chess).
    "Dang..." I said. I made another move, eating a soldier with my car. My teacher moved his horse.
    We kept on playing. After a while, my teacher told me that I had already won. All I had to do was move my car down. My cannon was positioned in a spot where I could eat the king if he moved to the left, and my horse could eat the king if he moved forward. Now that my car was in position, the king couldn't go anywhere without being eaten.
    We played one more round of chess. After that, my teacher started teaching me a few things. He put a few chess pieces on the chess board. "Do you know how to win?" He asked me.
    I started messing around and trying to figure out how to win, but after about 3 minutes, I asked my teacher how to win. "Look, it's pretty easy. You mark this elephant. The elephant will move up. Because you are already marking the elephant, you eat it. If the other elephant decides to eat you, your king can afly over and eat the other king. Then, you can win."
    He started testing me to make sure I understood. When I didn't know what piece to move (and it was a really easy decision), he would make me think so that I would remember it for a long time.
    "Don't worry if you forget what to do. We're humans, not computers. Computers will never forget things, but humans will." My teacher told me.
    He kept on teaching me new things. After that, we played another match. And just like that, my class was over.
    I had learned a lot today.

Slice Of Life #215 - Camping - Tuesday, May 28th, 2019

    I opened the boot of the car to take out my camping gear. Today, I was going to be going camping with my Boy Scout troop. I saw my friends waiting for me in the elementary foyer. I walked into the parents' lounge, where we were all waiting because it had an air-conditioner. Estefano, one of my patrol-mates, was playing a really weird game.
    After a while, we transported all our materials to the cars and the buses. The bus ride was really cool and fun. We saw a plane that was a balloon, so the plane was just levitating up in the air, and we laughed at it for a pretty long time. Now that I think about it, I really don't know why it was funny, but it was just really funny.
    We also played truth or dare, and we dared Toby, one of my friends, to lick his palm. The next time he chose dare, it then became lick a palm tree (Toby hasn't licked one yet, but I doubt he's going to do it anyways).
    After the bus ride, we unpacked everything from the car. As soon as we came down from the bus, it was immediately a bloody battle between us and the insects. I took out my insect repellent and sprayed it on myself.
    We found a good spot to camp and started to set up our tents. After we set up our tents, we went to cook our lunch. I then realized that I forgot to eat my breakfast, so I ended up eating it for lunch. We talked to each other for a while after lunch, then went to wash our utensils.
    When everyone was here, we crossed the road to a clearing next to the beach, where we did some rank advancement. We learned new things so that we could get to the rank of Scout in Boy Scouting.
    I was one of the first people to finish all the requirements, so I then went to have a Scoutmaster Conference with Scoutmaster Graham. After that, I went with our Senior Patrol Leader, Christen, to work on the Totin' Chip, which allows you to use a pocketknife, saw, and axe when you go on other camps with your troop.
    I managed to earn the Totin' Chip, so I then went to play at the beach with a few of my friends. We saw a whole "crab army" - we saw at least 25,000 small crabs. After playing on the beach for a few hours, we went back to the campsite to make dinner. For dinner, we were having hamburgers. I helped cut the burgers in half. Edwin did all the cooking, and Leo put the ham and vegetables inside the burger. Because I was vegetarian, I ate burgers with only vegetables in them.
    After that, we built a campfire and started it. We told each other jokes and performed the skits that we had organized under short notice. We planned it over a course of 2 minutes and never practiced it...
    We saw 5 satellites flying together over us, and so we went to the beach to check it out. We also saw Mars and Uranus from the campsite.
    Sleeping was really hard to do. I managed to sleep for a few hours, but then woke up because lots of other people also couldn't sleep and started chatting to each other - really loudly. They then started to play The Game of Life on an Ipad, which was even more annoying because they started talking even more.
    When we woke up the next day, it was a fierce battle between us and the mosquitoes again. The first thing we did was to take down our tents. Next, we went to boil water for breakfast because we were having instant noodles. I ended up eating 2 cups of instant noodles and a slice of bread. We also made ham and cheese sandwiches.
    After that, we did a quick sweep around the large campsite to pick up trash. After that, we went home. Those 2 days were 2 really fun and meaningful days, as I had earned my Scout rank and Totin' Chip.

The Swimming Carnival/Wet 'n Wild

    I heard the beep of Coach Jorge's whistle and got up on the blocks.
    I steadied myself, putting my strong leg, my right leg, at the back so I would be able to get a decent head start.
    "On your marks," Coach Jorge said. I put my hands down by the blocks and tightened my body.
    "GO!" Coach Jorge shouted. I blasted off and dove into the water. We were swimming freestyle, and I knew that lots of people in my heat were pretty fast when it came to freestyle.
    Kick! Kick! I thought to myself, frantically pulling my arms back and fourth, trying to reach the finish line first.
    I saw the flags in front of me, telling me that there were 5 more meters to go. I kicked and pulled my hands and legs even harder. I slammed my hand on the finish line. Yes! I had came 2nd out of the 25 meter freestyle race. A teacher gave me a wristband. A wristband was what the P.E. department gave us every year as a compliment for finishing the race.
    I opened the gate and headed outside for the next activity - wet and wild. Because I was given the number 2 by Mr. Ross, I headed to the slip and slide, which was the first activity my group (group 2) was going to do. Chris went first, and I went next. I ran and fell on my belly, sliding on the soap on the slip and slide.
    Our next activity was a game where we were given a container with holes in it. We were supposed to cover the holes with our teammates and get the water in the container to another bucket, where we would empty the container. We then ran back to fill the container with water again, covered the holes, and brought the water to the other bucket. The team with the most water in the container then won. Our team tied with another team for 1st place.
    Next, we went to an activity where we had a few sponges. We were to fill the sponge with water, then run to another bucket to release the water in the sponge. Then, another teammate would run to fill the bucket with water as we ran back to pass the sponge to another person. Overall, we got 2nd place.
    After that, we got to eat snacks. Each person was allowed one bag of popcorn and one popsicle. Overall, I thought that today was a meaningful day of exercise. We all had a lot of fun. It was a great day.

Slice Of Life #214 - I'm Back! - Tuesday, May 21st, 2019

    I'm back from Taiwan! I've just came back not long ago. I'm probably going to unpack my bags tomorrow because it's really late now. In fact, it's Wednesday, but I'm making up for yesterday's slice.

    I watched a whole lot of TV shows on the plane. I managed to finish 8 TV shows (each of them were 30 minutes).

    Yesterday, we went to the Tzu Chi Hospital in Taipei, Taiwan. Other than that, I also got to go to the Tzu Chi University in Taipei. I got to take a glimpse of the silent mentor program, which is a program where people donate their bodies after they die for the cause of medicine. Some of the bodies are frozen and heated up to body temperature 3 days before they are used, and students can conduct surgeries on the bodies as practice.

    After the program, the students show a lot of respect to the donor, as the donor is a teacher to them, a person who has sacrificed their body for the students.

    I'm really tired now, so I'm going to be continuing this slice next week. Bye!

Slice Of Life #213 - Band Concert - Tuesday, May 14th, 2019

    We all quietly filed onto the stage. I clutched my clarinet tight. Looking up towards the audience, I could see lots of eyes staring down at us. I heard the Gamelan players play songs beside me.
    I carefully took my seat on the chair and opened my file. My friend, Aidan, took out the pieces that we were going to play for the concert. Then, we put our clarinets in rest position.
    I watched as Leo and Sahana walked towards the podium. "Welcome to the Grade 5 band's portion of tonight's performance. Thank you for coming."
    They were telling the audience about our first selection for tonight. After they finished talking, my band teacher waited until they were ready. Then, she checked the percussion section to make sure that they were ready.
    Ms. Endel, my music teacher's, hands went up. My instrument went up to my face. And with 4 swift movements of her hands, I took a deep breath and started to play.
    After 4 measures, the rest of the band joined in. Not after long, we finished the song. Then, we started playing the woodwind features. The flutists played a short part of the Nutcracker, our oboist played the Snake Charmer, the clarinetists played The Lion Sleeps Tonight, and the saxophones played Somewhere Over the Rainbow.
    After that, we played Dance of the Jabberwocky. Then, the brass section and percussionists played a few songs.
    Finally, we played The Tempest. We had been learning how to play our instruments for a year now, and we were now ready. I watched my music teacher's hands move quickly. I took a deep breath and played a deep, concentrated sound.
    The song lasted for about 2 minutes. At the end of the song, we all stood up. Everyone clapped for us. They clapped for about 20 seconds (and I'm not exaggerating).
    Our principal, Ms. Julie, came up onto the stage to say a few words. After she was done, we all walked off the stage with delight. I smiled, knowing that our parents were obviously amazed.
    I smiled and stepped off the stage.

A Meaningful Night

    My heart was beating fast as I walked to the front of the stage. With confidence, I said my first line, loud and clear.
    "So, what's next?"
     My friends replied me, saying their lines. And soon enough, we were off, swiftly saying our lines.
    Not after long, we reached the conclusion.
    "So the next time you use single-use plastics, think about the next 10 generations after us." I said.
    "'Cause these problems keep getting bigger and bigger." Linnea said.
    "And when these problems actually strike, the whole world will be in crisis." Karen said.
    "So please, when it's child labor or plastic pollution, go home and reconsider all this now." I said.
    "Because if we don't you'll find out soon enough that we're destroying what we call," Karen said.
    "Home, sweet, home." We all said together.
    I heard footsteps behind me as my classmates all stumbled to the front of the stage.
    I heard Linnea's 1st foot tap, signalling for us to get ready.
    And as soon as she was done with her 3rd foot tap, we took a deep breath and started to speak.
    "BE A PART OF THE SOLUTION AND NOT THE POLLUTION, BECAUSE US KIDS, DESERVE A BETTER FUTURE!" We all shouted together.
    The audience clapped and cheered. "Nice job, kids!" I heard Ms. Schneider say as we filed off the stage.
    Success! I thought as I walked back to my seat.
    We had planned this performance for a long time now, and after a month of hard work, we had finally put it into action. The Night of the Notables performance was not over. The Night of the Notables performance was a performance that Grade 5 did every year. The performance was performed for the parents.

Karen, me, and Linnea (from left to right)

    For the performance, the students would split into groups and do some research. After that, we used our own words and eventually made a script. From this experience, I thought that I was able to use my writing skills for a good cause.
    I think that memorizing my lines was somewhat challenging for me. I don't really know why this was a challenge for me, but after a while of practicing and checking my lines again and again, I was able to overcome my challenge and memorize my lines.
    There were also a few things that I learned about myself because of this performance. I learned that I had a better imagination than I expected because I was able to use my writing skills to make meaningful lines for the performance.
    From watching from the other performances, I realized everyone was able to project their voices so that everyone could hear what they said. I also learned a lot about child labor and animal testing because the other classes were able to confer their information pretty well to the audience.
    I wouldn't change anything about the performance because I thought everyone did pretty well.
    I think that I will take a few actions because of the ideas presented at the Night of the Notables performance. I will try to use less plastic and only buy products that do not use animal testing.
    Night of the Notables is a performance that Grade 5 makes every year. And from this performance, we help make the world a better place. If every school in the world did this, the world would be an amazing and peaceful place.
    Because us kids, deserve a better future! Because if this continues, kids in the future generations won't know the true definition of a future. Because they won't have a future.

Slice Of Life #212 - NOVEL KNOCKOUT! - Tuesday, May 7th, 2019

    The cold air of the library hit me straight in the face. "Good luck," Mr. Herbert said to us.
    I looked around the library. Nervous energy immediately filled my body. I wasn't expecting this.
    I had already knew that we were going to be competing against 21 teams, but it didn't really occur to me in my brain that with 21 teams came a whole lot of people.
    "Over here," Ms. Suji, our librarian, called over to us.
    We went over to a corner in the library. "I have a few things to do, so help quiz each other."
    My friend, Aadit, opened up a book and started quizzing me on it. I looked at my teammates. They were already being quizzed by other people.
    After a while, Ms. Suji came back to us again. We were going to be going to the Melawati Theater soon to take part of the Novel Knockout competition. The competition was organized by KLLN (Kuala Lumpur Library Network). Because of that, there were many schools coming to compete, all striving to become the champion of Novel Knockout.
    In the Novel Knockout competition, we were asked a variety of extremely detailed questions from 8 different (selected) books. It was a team "sport", as some people would "specialize" in a few books and memorize the details in them. The team would then compete together, as a team and answer all the questions. I had previously finished all the 8 books and was ready for the competition. I had worked extremely hard for this, and really hoped to get 1st place this year.
    Our elementary school Novel Knockout competition was first.
    "And finally... Please welcome, ISKL, the International School of Kuala Lumpur!" The commentator said.
    I took a deep breath and walked to the front of the auditorium.
For about a few minutes, the commentator explained and clarified a few things for us competitors.
    We started the Ipad questions. The first few questions were pretty easy. After only a few seconds, 10 questions were to be answered on a piece of paper. These questions were worth 1 point, but if you wrote down an answer close to the correct answer but not descriptive enough, you could get 1/2 a point.
    The Ipad questions were multiple choice questions, so you could at least get some questions correct if you were lucky enough if you didn't know the correct answer.
    Some of the questions on the Ipad and the questions on the paper were the same, which was a real lifesaver, because it always provided us with the correct answer when we didn't know the answer.
    After the elementary teams competed, we watched the secondary teams compete. The commentator would also ask trivia questions to the audience, and if we answered the trivia questions correctly, we would be able to get a KitKat and/or a free book.
    After a while, the results came out. 5th place was announced first. My heart was beating fast. I was literally shivering. I really wanted to get 1st place this year.
    "And in 2nd place..." The commentator said. We waited. "Is ISKL 2!"
    "Yes!" I yelled with happiness. I quickly went to the front of the auditorium to claim my prize, a book voucher.
    I clutched the envelope that contained the book voucher in it tightly. I had worked hard for the competition, and finally, we did it.